RFQ Issued For $70 Million Fifth Third Arena Renovations
By Chris Bains
A request for qualifications has been issued for $70 million in funding for a Fifth Third Arena project, presumably renovations to the home of Cincinnati Bearcats basketball that hasn’t been touched since 1989. Huge tip of the cap to Chris Peterson for digging this valuable nugget up.
The University of Cincinnati appears to be taking another step towards bringing Fifth Third Arena into the 21st century, a renovation that was originally planned to reduce capacity to 10,000 and thereby improving the fan experience for all attendees. It would also include replacing the roll away bleachers with permanent seats.
It’s unclear if those specs are still set it stone but the fact that UC is getting the ball rolling with potential architecture and construction firms is encouraging. Among those Nippert-like improvements listed specifically in the RFQ:
- A new roof
- Upgrades to restrooms, concessions, suites, lighting, and the heating and cooling systems
- Expanded concourses and stairwells
- Permanent seats instead of bleachers
However, it seems changing the location of the actual arena floor isn’t in the cards.
The initial cost for the Fifth Third renovations has been booked at $70 million, a fairly reasonable assessment for a venue whose interior and exterior are grossly outdated. UC is also pegging the timeline of the project to last a maximum of 20 months with the school moving the basketball team offsite for just one season, much in the same manner as the football team this year. This could also change but it would make sense for workers to begin construction immediately following the end of a Bearcats basketball season.
The University of Cincinnati is aiming to break ground in April, 2016 with construction wrapped up by November, 2017, just in time for the Bearcats’ 2017-18 basketball season. It’s likely UC will try to load up on marquee opponents that season to take advantage of their shiny new digs.